Dragonsblood: Chapter 2
1P42 (50 AL) Wind Blossom awoke from a dream involving her mother, Kit Ping Yung, telling her she was a disappointment to her. She was awoken by the sound of a dragon. She is at the College (later known as Harper Hall). There is an emergency which requires her assistance. A new trainee fetches her, calling her "My lady", an appelation, along with "lord", which had been growing in popularity among the younger generation. Weyrleader M'hall has brought a boy to the College who was injured in an attack by a watch-wher. The patient was severely injured, lacerations on face, neck, and abdomen. The boy is 10 years old. The boy's father tells her that his blood type can only be O-positive. His father is Peter Tubberman, son of Ted Tubberman, and now known as Purman. There are only one set of sutures left. Wind Blossom speaks quietly with M'hall, telling him of this fact, and that using it will mean that another may die later, probably a dragonrider. However, the kind of wounds that need sutures are so rare that few know how to treat them, and it's likely that they wouldn't be needed again until no one is left who can use them. Thus, they are to be used. The young boy is the last person on Pern to be treated with sutures and antibiotics. Surgery begins. Purman, Emorra (Wind Blossom's daughter) and Wind Blossom herself donate a unit of blood each to the boy. Wind Blossom is the last to give blood, after sewing the boy up. Because of her age, she passes out. She dreams again. She is arguing with her mother, Kitti Ping, about what her greatest success was. Wind Blossom argues that it was teh Multichord songbird of Cetus III, while Kit Ping argues that it was the leechworm. The leechworm and the Multichord songbird were designed to help rebuild Cetus III after the nuclear destruction by the Nathi. The leechworm concentrated radiactives in a controlled sector, while the Songbird controlled the leechworms and guarded the pollen-spreading systems. Wind Blossom is woken by Purman, asking why she made the watch-whers. Purman tells Wind Blossom how the accident happened. Tieran had tried to scratch the wher's head while it was sleeping, and it lashed out instinctively, an instinct Wind Blossom had thought she'd eliminated. She tells Purman that the wher had to be destroyed before it could pass on those genes. After Emorra leaves, Wind Blossom tells Piemur about the underlying plans for the grubs, dragons, and whers. Wind Blossom asks Purman about the purpose of his father's felines. She, apparently, does not know their purpose. Wind Blossom relates her fear that something may happen to the Dragons some day. Characters Introduced *Carelly - a young intern *Emorra *Janir *Latrel - an intern at the medical center *Tieran Characters Appearing *Kit Ping Yung (dream) *M'hall *Purman *Wind Blossom Characters Mentioned *Paul Benden *Emily Boll *J'ran (formerly Jaran) - wherhandler for Bendensk, the wher that harmed Tieran D02